After a couple of years recharging and reworking things out, former Anteros vocalist Lala Hayden is back under her own steam – and this time, she’s embracing her true self. Read our latest Hype cover feature.
Words: Stephen Ackroyd.
Lala Hayden is not one for sitting still. As her latest single ‘baby you’re the best!’ arrives, she’s already riding the crest of her latest productive streak, crafting new material with the fervour of someone who’s rediscovered their passion. “At the moment, I’m in the midst of a creative outburst, so I’m focused on riding the wave and writing constantly, which happens to be my favourite place to be,” she enthuses.
This latest renaissance comes after a period of introspection and reinvention for Hayden. Having fronted indie band Anteros for the better part of a decade, she found herself at a crossroads following the release of their debut album in 2019. The experience left her feeling depleted, both mentally and physically. “I realised that I’d put everything in my life aside in the hopes that making an album would make it all better,” she confides. “My mental health was a mess, I was anorexic… just everything was upside down. I felt like I needed to hit the pause button and deal with the mountain of shit that was only getting bigger.”
What followed was a two-year hiatus from music, during which Hayden immersed herself in studies of positive psychology, holistic health, nutrition, yoga, and meditation. It was a period of intense self-discovery and healing. “It was like I needed to go back to school and learn how to be human,” she reflects. This journey of self-exploration didn’t just reshape Hayden’s approach to life; it fundamentally altered her relationship with music.
“I thought when I took a break that I might never make music again,” Hayden admits. The industry’s relentless pace and the constant pressure to look ahead had taken their toll. “There’s so much outside noise. The constant future-thinking – next single, next show, next best thing – there can be a temptation to look around at what others are doing and get caught up in that.”
But rather than turning her back on music entirely, Hayden’s sabbatical seems to have rekindled her love for the craft. Her return to the studio, collaborating with producer Ben Christophers in Hertfordshire, has been a revelation. “He creates a magic environment where I get to quiet the outside noise and just let my inner child run free,” she says, with the air of an artist finally free to do what she wants to do.
“I’m just in the mood to embrace womanhood, I guess”
lala hayden
This renewed passion is evident in ‘baby you’re the best!’, a track that showcases Hayden’s evolution as an artist. The single, which she describes as coming from a place of frustration with societal norms, particularly regarding relationships, is a bold statement of intent. “I keep feeling triggered when I see older men with much younger women – women who could be their daughters,” Hayden explains. “It’s like these grown men don’t want to be challenged; they just want to be praised… and nothing evolves or changes.”
The song’s perspective is a clever subversion of expectations. Rather than taking aim at the younger women in these scenarios, Hayden writes from the viewpoint of the first wife, “who is desperate to feel seen. She wants her man to grow with her instead of disengaging when it feels too difficult or not what he wants to hear.” It’s a nuanced take on a complex issue, demonstrating Hayden’s growth not just as a musician, but as a voice.
Musically, ‘baby you’re the best!’ draws inspiration from a pantheon of artists who understand their own specific style, including Kate Bush, Ladyhawke, Donna Summer, and Jessie Ware. This shift in influence marks a significant departure from Hayden’s previous work. “For my whole 20s, I feel like I mostly just listened to music made by guys, and then I was in a band with guys for a long time. I would even try to sing as low as possible so that I could try to sound like a guy,” she reveals.
This admission is particularly poignant, highlighting the often unspoken pressures faced by women in the music industry to conform to male-dominated norms. Hayden’s embrace of her femininity as she matures feels like a reclamation of her authentic self. “As soon as I hit 30, I was like, wait – why am I trying to shut out this whole other side of me?” she muses. “I went back to the music my mother would play on the way to school when I was little, and I don’t know…! Music just started pouring out, and what used to feel hard, like coming up with lyrics and melodies, just felt effortless.”
“My life is mine, and only I can tell my story”
lala hayden
This newfound ease in creation is evident in Hayden’s output. While she remains coy about future releases, there’s a sense that ‘baby you’re the best!’ is just the tip of the iceberg. “There’s more music ready to go!” she teases. But Hayden’s renaissance extends beyond her musical endeavours. During her hiatus, she developed a passion for personal development coaching, a practice that now runs parallel to her music career. “Coaching allows me to step out of my own world and show up for others,” she explains. “I find it extremely rewarding, and I also find that it grounds me a lot – which is what I need if I want to create a place of non-freaked-out, depressed state.”
“I like to call it gardening,” she explains. “In a world that is constantly trying to distract us, through coaching, I take you back to your garden so that you can make it somewhere you love to be, so that you don’t keep getting distracted unconsciously into other people’s gardens.”
This holistic approach to creativity and well-being seems to be at the core of Hayden’s current ethos. She sees a clear connection between her coaching work and her music, both serving as mediums for connection and upliftment. “The message is the same; it’s only the medium that changes,” she notes.
As for why she chose to release ‘baby you’re the best!’ now, Hayden’s answer reveals a deep-seated frustration with the current state of affairs. “I feel frustrated at the current state of affairs – politically, financially, socially,” she confides. “I feel like so many women are running around doing the inner ‘work’ to make the world a better place for future generations, and I just keep wondering what would happen if men in positions of power would stop putting financial gain and their own self-interest over human lives and would accept these times as an opportunity to grow and challenge the status quo.”
Hayden’s journey of self-discovery has also led her to reassess her relationship with the music industry. She’s acutely aware of the pitfalls that come with a career in music, particularly the mental health challenges that many artists face. “I love making music, but there are a lot of things around it that feel like they’re designed to bring you down,” she observes. To combat these challenges, she’s adopted a mantra that guides her approach to her career: “Do it from love.”
As Hayden looks to the future, she’s finally brimming with optimism. “More music. More shows. More service,” she says, outlining her plans – creatively fulfilled, eager to connect with audiences, and committed to making a positive impact. With her renewed sense of purpose and a wealth of life experiences to draw from, she’s posed and ready to make some of the most compelling music of her career. As she puts it herself, “My life is mine, and only I can tell my story.” And what a story it’s shaping up to be.
